Prince – Controversy (1981/2013) [HDTracks 24-192]

Composed, produced, arranged and performed by Prince, Controversy is the music icon’s 1981 classic. Reaching #3 on Billboard’s Top R&B Albums, the work features the hit R&B singles “Controversy” and “Let’s Work.” This undeniable masterpiece highlights Prince’s remarkable musicianship. The outing received four stars from Blender and Rolling Stone.

Controversy continues in the same vein of new wave-tinged funk on Dirty Mind, emphasizing Prince’s fascination with synthesizers and synthesizing disparate pop music genres. It is also more ambitious than its predecessor, attempting to tackle social protest (“Controversy,” “Ronnie, Talk to Russia,” “Annie Christian”) along with sex songs (“Jack U Off,” “Sexuality”), and it tries hard to bring funk to a rock audience and vice versa. Even with all of Prince’s ambitions, the music on Controversy doesn’t represent a significant breakthrough from Dirty Mind, and it is often considerably less catchy and memorable. Nevertheless, Prince’s talents as musician make the record enjoyable, even if it isn’t as compelling as most of his catalog.